Ida Greenfield wrote last Saturday, April 23:
Justin Green died last night in a Cincinnati hospital. I spoke with him last week - he knew how sick he was and still had a lot of work to do .
Two weeks ago he sent me this piece of artwork [attached]. His sister Karin thinks it might the last “productive” thing he did.
There is a documentary coming out about Justin and his wive Carol Tyler.
She too is a rather well known graphic artist( *you can look I her up on Amazon.) “Married to Comics” is the title of the doc and I do know Justin was opposed to being a part of the project. He was always - and until the very end - oppositional.
There is so much more to say but for now I’d like to quote Dylan Thomas when describing Justin’s final weeks - “do not go gently into that good night“ -
Your pal, *( wink;) that’s how Justin would sign his letters to me - when people still wrote letters .
Both the Chicago Tribune and the New York Times have seen fit to publish staff-written obituaries for Justin.
Chicago Tribune: https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/ct-ent-justin-green-comics-obituary-20220429-fq2nxm67r5ewtdnu7nvt7ceyui-story.html
New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/30/arts/justin-green-who-put-himself-into-his-underground-cartoons-dies-at-76.html
Also a Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Green_(cartoonist)
My last memory of Justin Green was of him pulling up to the right of me at the stop sign on northbound St. Johns at Roger Williams on a motorcycle while I was behind the wheel of my dad's Corvette. He shouted at me: 'Drag for beer?' I recall laughing, and he flew off forward doing a wheelie before I could even think to respond
Both the Chicago Tribune and the New York Times have seen fit to publish staff-written obituaries for Justin.
Chicago Tribune: https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/ct-ent-justin-green-comics-obituary-20220429-fq2nxm67r5ewtdnu7nvt7ceyui-story.html
New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/30/arts/justin-green-who-put-himself-into-his-underground-cartoons-dies-at-76.html
Also a Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Green_(cartoonist)
I remember when Justin's family moved to Highland Park. We both lived on Prospect Avenue, a couple of blocks apart. Not sure how we ran into each other, but we spent the summer riding our bikes.
His style, even then, foreshadowed the way his style would emerge. My bike, at least when we first met, had fenders, luggage rack, fancy seat, and handlebar streamers. His was stripped to its essentials: seat, chain guard, handlebars, wheels, and pedals. He called it 'bombing the bicycle.' Eventually, I stripped mine to match; put it back together a year or so later I think.
